The World’s First Ad Break Built in LEGO

To advertise the forthcoming LEGO Movie, Warner Bros. planned to rekindle childhood memories by sprinkling a dash of magic on an otherwise ‘normal’ ad break - literally rebuilding it entirely in LEGO.

Four existing TV ads were recreated, shot-by-shot and brick-by-brick, to surprise and delight both adults and kids. The ad break takeover was then screened during Dancing on Ice, just days before the movie’s launch.

Nearly 6 million people saw the LEGO ad break live on TV, and another 1.2 million sought it out on YouTube. It was the best performing ad break ever measured by YouGov and the movie smashed its box office targets.

Results:

Viewers reacted positively towards the brands involved in the ad break and even found them more engaging than the originals

61% of viewers said the adverts stood out when compared to others

67% said they enjoyed seeing something different from standard adverts

73% agreed that more brands should think of creative ways to advertise

Over a third of viewers said that they would talk about or share the ads

We used the Bloom Agency's Whisper tool to monitor social activity for a period of eight days either side of the stunt and measured the level of social buzz around the brands involved (Confused.com, British Heart Foundation, Premier Inn, BT and Lego). This included volume, the level of engagement and how information was shared.